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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27855330">Impulse</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScribblerQueen1/pseuds/ScribblerQueen1'>ScribblerQueen1</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anxious Katsuki Yuuri, Confident Katsuki Yuuri, Freeform, Friendship, Gen, Idol AU, Katsuki Yuuri Protection Squad, M/M, Sort Of, YOI JPOP Idol AU</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 22:48:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,319</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27855330</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScribblerQueen1/pseuds/ScribblerQueen1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When Yuuri was 15, he was offered the chance to be in an idol group and he took it in order to continue skating. Over eight years later he's at a crossroads, not exactly sure what he should do next. At least until a certain video goes viral.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>185</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Taking a Chance</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yuuri generally thought that he was pretty average. He’s a dime a dozen competitive skater from a small tourist town in Japan that was losing interest and facing an economic decline. He was not even sure that he’d be moving up to the senior division considering that his current coach is Nishigori-san, who owns the Ice Castle and until Yuuri he had only been giving amateur level skating lessons that most of the kids in his town took. Only a handful ever entered competitions but Yuuri was the first to qualify for competitions at the Junior level. </p><p>He was thankful though. Nishigori-san had stuck with him so that he could compete and did his best to train Yuuri beyond his own skill set. But with the way things were going and the threat of his family’s onsen closing with the sudden shift in tourism he would likely withdraw from skating to alleviate the expense that his family was putting out so that he could compete.</p><p>At least that was what he thought he would be doing when a man, Handa Ryuu, showed up at Yuu-topia. </p><p>“I’m sorry, you must be mistaken! You want to recruit me for an idol group?” Yuuri could only gape at the man in front of him.</p><p>“You are Katsuki Yuuri, Junior Figure Skater, am I correct?” Handa questioned him.</p><p>“Yes, but, I don’t understand why you want me? It’s not like I’m special or anything.” </p><p>Handa puts his elbow on the table in front of him and rests his head on top of his hand, studying Yuuri with an almost predator-like look that sends a chill down his spine. A smirk graces his lips. “Hmm, is that so? So, you haven’t placed the last three Junior Grand Prix finals? Or come in fourth at Nationals? Or take bronze at the Spring cup? Sixth at Junior Worlds? Do you not also study under Okukawa Minako, recipient of the Benois de la Danse? It sounds like you're pretty special to me.”</p><p>It’s not like Yuuri can say those things are lies because he did in fact accomplish those things. However, those things, at least in his mind, do not correlate with joining an idol group.</p><p>“But I don’t fit an idol profile. I don’t even know if I could sing or act, or do anything idols do really? Why me?”</p><p>He just stares helpless at the man. Maybe he’s asleep, still in his bed and this is just a weird dream. The worst case scenarios are that this is a prank or he hit his head on the ice causing him to go into a coma, and this is the plot of whatever tv show is playing in his hospital room. </p><p>Handa lets Yuuri take it in for a moment. </p><p>“Maybe not yet. You can learn to sing and act, most idols are trained for these sorts of things but I’ve been recruiting idols for a while now. I’ve never been wrong about who I’ve chosen, it’s an instinct you could say. You’ll be able to continue skating, if that’s what you’re worried about but think of this as an opportunity to build up your career.” </p><p>Could Yuuri learn to be an idol? Or was he just saying those things to get him to agree. What if he turned out to be tone deaf? He’s just some awkward teenager. Idols are handsome and attractive, how could anyone see him that way?</p><p>“Listen, you have a lot to think about. I’m not going to rush you, I’ll leave my card and then you can contact me with your answer.” Handa bids him and his family farewell and leaves Yuuri there with his thoughts.</p><p>That night he doesn’t get any sleep because despite the whole notion being ridiculous to him, he can’t help but wonder about it. Yuuri looks at the posters of Victor Nikiforov on his wall. Can he really imagine someone having pictures of himself on their walls? Admiring him, like he does Victor. He glances down at Vicchan, curled up against him sleeping. Would someone adopt a poodle and name it after him?</p><p>Yuuri finds himself, a week later, still mulling over the idea of being in an idol group. He should have already called up Handa and rejected the offer already but he can’t. It’s weird, there’s this voice inside his head that says that there’s no way he can be an idol, no one would care about him. Yet, Handa seemed so sure about it and then there’s a part of his brain that says if this succeeded, then it would benefit Hasetsu and Yuu-topia. Tourism would increase as a result probably. But would it even work?</p><p>So, he’s at the ice rink, doing compulsive circles to work out his thoughts. Takeshi and Yuuko have disappeared into the back of the rink, working, so when he looks up and sees a figure at the edge of the rink he thinks one of them must have come back. Yuuri squints and realizes that the person is too tall to be Takeshi and pulls up to where his glasses are thinking it’s a confused customer.</p><p>Surprisingly it’s Handa.</p><p>“Handa-san, what are you doing here?” He nearly stumbles on the ice as the man gives a wave.</p><p>“Just checking in, normally I’ve gotten a response by now but you haven’t tried to reject or accept my offer. I thought I’d help you work out whatever concerns you have, since this seems to be a difficult decision for you.”</p><p>Yuuri surprised that he’s this insistent about him, most people would take that as rejection instead of coming back to convince him.</p><p>“Well, I can’t say that I haven’t thought about it.” He admits.</p><p>Handa nods. “What is it that seems to be troubling you the most?”</p><p>Yuuri considers for a moment all the thoughts that he’s had about the offer and there’s really only one concern. </p><p>“I guess it’s just that I’m not really confident about it. Like I can’t imagine someone looking up to me the way I look up to my idols. I’ve been bullied a lot by the kids at my school for liking ice skating and competing, so I have anxiety when it comes to performing and I feel like I wouldn’t have the confidence to do something like that.”</p><p>Handa crosses his arms and studies Yuuri. </p><p>“I honestly find that hard to believe. I’ve watched you skate. Those things don’t seem to stop you from skating but maybe it’s because you love skating more than your fear of what others think. Also if you paid a little more attention, you might realize that there are plenty of people who already look up to you as a skater.”</p><p>Yuuri’s head snaps up in surprise. “There are?”</p><p>“Trust me, I did my research on you. Someone who competes at an international level like you doesn’t just go unnoticed. I didn’t just pick you at random, you may not see it but you're already inspiring others.” He dismisses Yuuri’s concerns so nonchalantly.</p><p>But could he keep doing it. To survive in seniors he needs a better coach, not that he can afford the cost of one. He doesn’t want to stop, Handa is right about how much he loves skating. He’s too stubborn to quit, the only issue is would it be feasible for him. He had mentioned that Yuuri wouldn’t have to quit skating to be an idol, he wondered if that meant becoming an idol could provide him with the resources to move up to seniors.</p><p>“I have a question, if you don’t mind?”</p><p>“Of course not.” Handa gestures for him to go ahead.</p><p>“Would you be able to help me find a coach that can help with transitioning to the senior division? Right now, Nishigori-san is my coach but he’s not a proper coach. If I were to continue on with him into seniors, I wouldn’t be able to compete against the other skaters properly. On the other hand I don’t think I could afford to pay for a better coach, let alone while competing at a higher level. Recently, I was considering quitting because I can’t keep putting the burden on my family.”</p><p>He cuts Yuuri off there. “So if we gave you the opportunity to continue skating, you would consider being an idol, is what you’re suggesting?” </p><p>Yuuri holds his breath as he watches him think it over.</p><p>“I’ll have to talk to some higher ups, I can’t make that decision on my own but I always get what I want. Give me a few days and I’ll have an answer for you.” </p><p>Handa pulls out his cell phone and waves goodbye to Yuuri as he leaves the rink. It was such an unperturbed response to what Yuuri was asking for and it honestly weirded him out that he really didn’t have to argue for it. He basically told Yuuri that he was going to make it happen, not that he believed it, at least until he had undeniable proof that this was happening. Handa could still come back and say that it hadn’t worked out.</p><p>When he gets home from the rink, Yuuri seeks out his older sister so that he can talk out this new development with her. Talking with his parents had been no help to the situation already, they had no opinion on the subject. Much like when he wanted to start competing in figure skating they had said they would support whatever decision he made. Mari at least was a little more sensible and he could talk through his worries with her.</p><p>“Mari-neechan, can I talk to you about something?” </p><p>Mari paused from helping wash the dishes from their dinner guests. “Sure, is it about that idol thing?” She hands him a towel as she responds and he picks up a plate to dry it off.</p><p>“Yeah, the manager came to see me again today at the rink. He wanted to see if he could answer some questions in order to convince me.” He sets the dry plate on top of other clean plates and takes the next one from Mari.</p><p>“Hmm, and did he?” She asks him.</p><p>“I asked him if the idol agency would help me find a coach for senior competitions and maybe take some of the burden of the cost of competing off Kaa-san and Tou-san. We both know that Hasetsu is struggling and that it’s affecting them more than they’re willing to admit because they don’t want to make me quit.” He pauses staring at the plate in his hands. </p><p>“And if they could, you would accept his offer, is what you’re saying. What was his response?” She hands him another plate.</p><p>“He didn’t seem to have any problems with the idea but he needs to talk with the idol agency first.” Yuuri admits to her. “But what if I’m not good at this idol thing? What happens then?”</p><p>“Well, idol groups tend to take a few years to see if they succeed or not. Maybe you use what they’re offering you to get a footing in senior competitions in the meantime, and by the time the group busts you have a few sponsors to help you out instead of staying in juniors till you age out or can’t afford to skate anymore. Either way if the group succeeds or fails, you get to skate for a little while longer and that’s what you really want isn’t it?” </p><p>Mari sighs as she looks down at the particularly hard piece of food stuck on the plate she’d been scrubbing.</p><p>“To be honest, I know you pretty well. You’re my little brother and I know that you’ve already made up your mind about this, whether you realize it or not. You’re stubborn and you’ll do anything to keep skating, so I don’t even really know why we’re having this conversation other than it keeps you helping me with the dishes but whatever helps you work this out, I guess.” </p><p>Handa shows up two days later and is waiting for Yuuri when he gets out of school and heads home to grab his ice skates. He’s sitting at a table drinking tea and making idle chat with Yuuri’s mother.</p><p>“Ah, Yuuri! I have great news for you! I got the approval! So, have you made up your mind?” He asks Yuuri, but he’s pretty sure with the pleased look on his face that they both know the answer to his question.</p><p>“Yes, I have. I want to go through with it.”</p><p>Handa claps his hands together with a cheer. “That’s great! I knew you would come around. Now obviously we have to discuss some business details with your parents but I’ve started a list of coaches that we can look into in the meantime. I don’t have a lot of contacts in the figure skating world but we’ll work on that with time.”</p><p>The next week has Yuuri reviewing the contract and negotiating the terms with the help of Minako-sensei who knows a couple of things about these contracts having been an international ballet dancer who was contracted with many theatres and casts around the world. At the same time he reviewed the list of potential coaches that could be flexible with the arrangement.</p><p>By the end of it, he has a new coach that can help him transition into the senior division. </p><p>Higa Yo, his new coach, has competed internationally in the female singles skater category and retired the year prior. She has experience working as an assistant coach under her own former coach while she’d been competing, helping her own rinkmates transition into seniors. Yuuri had met her previously during nationals and had appreciated the advice she’d given him in settling his nerves. </p><p>After enjoying retirement for a year, she was looking to start coaching and was willing to take Yuuri on as her only student and would be able to accommodate his idol scheduling. In return, she was being paid a hefty sum by the idol agency and would be fully accommodated at Yuu-topia.</p><p>Yuuri takes to Higa like a fish to water. She’s only been there for three days and her coaching has already improved both his short program and free skate. He feels immensely more confident about his prospects for the rest of the season. There’s a bitter feeling about having this opportunity so late in the season, there’s not much left but the most important is worlds so he figures it’s better to end stronger there.</p><p>“Alright, let’s take a break.” Higa tells him after he finishes a run through.</p><p>They skate over the rink edge and Yuuri grabs his water bottle taking a sip. He glances over at Higa and notices a concentrated look on her face.</p><p>“Is something wrong?” </p><p>She’s surprised by the question but responds. “Nothing’s wrong, it’s just-can I ask something?”</p><p>He nods for her to go ahead.</p><p>“You don’t really seem like the type to join an idol group, I was just wondering why?” </p><p>It’s not an unusual question for her to ask, because he’d had the same argument when he’d been offered the deal. So he can see where the confusion is coming from.</p><p>“Honestly, it wasn’t something I had ever considered and I even originally tried to reject Handa’s offer when he made it but if I didn’t take it I don’t think I would’ve been able to afford continuing skating for longer. The costs to move up to seniors with an experienced coach might have hurt my family’s onsen with the decline in tourism to Hasetsu, I probably would’ve just stayed in juniors till I aged out.” Yuuri admits to Higa and she nods.</p><p>“It’s not about the idol group, it’s about your love for the ice. Now that’s something I understand.” She tells him. </p><p>“When I retired, I was sick of the training, the competitions, the traveling. Said I wasn’t going to set foot in an ice rink, just become a recluse far out in the countryside in a small town where no one would bug me. Turns out it’s a lot harder than I thought, the ice is our siren and we can’t resist when it beckons us. Giving up the ice wasn’t what I wanted, not really. I caved in three months and the closest rink was an hour by train, it was madness.”</p><p>They laugh at the confession shared between them. Once things settle, the two of them get back to their practice session.</p><p>In the few weeks before Yuuri’s next competition, Handa is traveling about Japan dealing with the business end of things and scouting out the potential members for the group and they don’t see much of him until the morning they’re set to leave for the competition. When Yuuri wakes up and comes down with his luggage in the early morning hours, he’s sitting enjoying tea and a light breakfast looking over a newspaper.</p><p>“Ah, Yuuri, good morning! Did you sleep well?” Yuuri mumbles a reply, not being much of a morning person to begin with. It gets a chuckle out of the idol manager.</p><p>“Well, once you’re more awake, there’s some things we need to go over.” He goes back to his breakfast and Yuuri’s mom appears with a plate and drink for him.</p><p>He’s halfway through his meal when Higa comes down and she looks like death warmed over. She’s not a morning person from the looks of it either and the really early hour that she’s waking up for the flight is absolutely brutal for her. </p><p>“Kami-sama, I didn’t miss this part at all.” </p><p>“Good morning to you too, Yo-san!” Higa fixes Handa with a sour look over his cheerfulness, she looks like she may be vaguely reconsidering her choices.</p><p>“If it was a good morning, I would still be in bed.” Is her blunt reply, but Handa doesn’t seem bothered by it.</p><p>“Anyway! As I mentioned earlier Yuuri! I’ve been working on scouting our additional members and I want your opinion on these profiles I’ve put together.” He passes over a stack of folders. “You can look them over on the flight.”</p><p>Yuuri doesn’t think much about them until after they’ve gotten on the plane. He pulls out the stack of folders from his carry on as he tries to enjoy the first class seats that Handa booked. It’s the first time he’s ever been in anything besides economy but this time he’s not the one who made the arrangements, so he tries not to worry too much.</p><p>He starts reading through the files and there’s a voice in the back of his head that wonders if Handa made a detailed profile for him like he did for these people. Better not to think about it actually. Yuuri’s not sure what he should be paying attention to or looking for as he makes his way through them but he does it anyway. He flips the last one closed and finds Handa looking at him intently.</p><p>“So? What are your impressions of them?” He asks without any prompt.<br/>
Yuuri shrugs at the question. “I’m not sure, on paper they all look like they would be good idols, I guess? I don’t know what kind of answer you're looking for.”</p><p>“That’s fair. I personally read people better this way but I understand the need for a more interpersonal assessment. In order for this group to succeed though, I need the other members to mesh well with you. See when I scouted you, I was drawn in by how you skated. You have a certain enchantment when you skate. I want to create an idol group with that. So, obviously I want your opinion.”</p><p>Handa says it so bluntly and matter of fact that it throws him off. He has this view and idea of him that Yuuri can’t begin to comprehend. His skating is enchanting? What does that mean? The manager continues on with his own train of thought.</p><p>“I’ll have to set up some sort of informal audition at the agency so that you can observe them. Aside from that do you have any more thoughts you’d like to share?” </p><p>Yuuri pauses for a moment looking at the folders. “How many people do you plan on recruiting for the group? You have a lot of profiles already.”</p><p>“Ah, I was thinking maybe seven? Thought I’d go with a lucky number.” He smiles at Yuuri, who finds his response weird.</p><p>He sighs and glances at Higa, who is out like a light on the other side of him. He should probably start focusing on the competition. </p><p>Their flight lands and Handa gently shakes him awake while grabbing their carry-ons. As they’re de-boarding the plane, he starts to prepare Yuuri.</p><p>“Just so that you’re not caught off guard, there’s already reporters at the gate. The JSF updated your coaching information officially this morning, there’s going to be questions about the change this late in the season. You don’t need to respond to the reporters, just let me handle it and get through the airport.” He nods along to the instructions and they start heading to grab their checked luggage.</p><p>Yuuri’s eyes widen in surprise at the large group of reporters that are waiting, they seem to spot them pretty fast as they head into the pickup area, calling Yuuri’s name. Handa steps in between him and the reporters blocking him from their view and places a hand on his back guiding him along. Once they have their luggage, Yuuri is guided towards their prearranged driver. As they get closer the reporters are calling for him more loudly, being to surround the area of the car. </p><p>Higa has stepped in on the other side of him and is telling them “No comment” as they quickly hide him away. It’s overwhelming, Yuuri’s never had this much attention when he’s gotten off the plane after flying in for a competition. Higa becoming his coach has obviously drawn a lot more attention than he anticipated. His hands shake at the thought. He gets into the car without much more hassle and the others follow, he’s relieved when they finally drive off.</p><p>“You did good.” Handa tells him, putting a hand over with a squeezing grasp. It relaxes Yuuri and he nods back.</p><p>Thankfully there’s not much of a commotion when they arrive at the hotel. The few reporters that are lurking about are distracted by skaters that had arrived ahead of him. Check-in is thankfully quick and they avoid being noticed by any of them. </p><p>Yuuri manages to sleep somewhat despite his nervousness about competing. His practice time is in the afternoon so it gives him time to adjust to the time difference but at the practice he still finds himself frustrated, messing up parts of his short program as he tries to work on tweaking the final aspects of the performance before he’s set to perform tomorrow.</p><p>After a particularly harsh fall, Yuuri goes over to the edge of the rink to take a break so that he can try and clear his head. Instead of Higa coming over so she can help correct his mistakes, it’s Handa who walks over to talk to him about how he’s skating. His immediate fear is that he might be criticized for his mistakes, failing to live up to expectations, but that’s not what happens.</p><p>“What story are you trying to tell when you’re skating?” </p><p>The question surprises him so it takes a moment to respond.</p><p>“Well my theme this year is ambition, so that’s what I’m trying to portray in my skating.”</p><p>“And what is that?”</p><p>Yuuri can’t help but hesitate at telling him. He’s only ever had one ambition and that’s to skate on the same ice as Victor Nikiforov. Handa seems two steps ahead of him.</p><p>“It wouldn’t happen to be related to a certain figure skater plastered over your bedroom walls, would it?”</p><p>It’s official, Handa definitely creeps him out. This man has no boundaries and can read his soul.</p><p>“Now, now, don’t give me that look, I’m trying to help you.” Yuuri doesn’t seem to believe that but for now he’ll go with it.</p><p>“Okay, so how are you going to help me with that?” He asks.</p><p>“We’re going to do a little exercise, first close your eyes and think back to the first time you saw him. Think about where you were, what you were doing, how you felt. Can you create a picture of that in your mind?” Handa starts giving him instructions. “Can you imagine it?”</p><p>Yuuri nods, he’s never forgotten that moment since it happened. It literally changed his life.</p><p>“Now, your ambition, the thing that you want most from him, the one thing that has made you skate despite everything. Can you feel it?” Yuuri nods.</p><p>“Good, now you're in the right headspace. I want you to go and do another run through now, and if you feel yourself struggling put yourself back in that moment.”</p><p>He doesn’t think that it will work but Yuuri goes ahead and skates through the parts that he messed up with those thoughts running through his mind.</p><p>“You got it!” Yuuri hears Higa cheer over his achievement and he realizes that he was so focused that he’d done it without much thought.</p><p>“It worked?” He looks over at Handa who nods in reassurance.</p><p>“It’s a visualization technique, it helps with anxiety. It may not always work, it’s something that takes practice and effort to keep working but I had a feeling it would be effective for you. We’re going to start using it to help you focus before competitions, okay?” The manager explains to him and he’s honestly surprised that the man put that much forethought into Yuuri’s skating.</p><p>Three days later, Yuuri has skated both programs with both Higa and Handa guiding him through the competition. Despite the intimidation and bewildering feelings he has about his manager he finds that the man has an almost hypnotic way of talking him through his nerves. The gold medal on his neck is surreal and it’s his first at an international competition, it gives him a high unlike anything he’s ever felt. His coach and manager are quite pleased as well.</p><p>After the competition, Handa informs Yuuri that he’s already made arrangements for him to be able to meet with the prospective idols under the guise of an audition process. There’s a week in between when they arrive back in Hasetsu and then so that he has time to catch up with school work. That’s how he finds himself in a dance studio with a perspective group of twenty-something idols.</p><p>None of them are particularly terrible dancers, some obviously don’t have any formal background in dance and he knows that Minako-sensei would cringe at them all. He should know as her student, prima ballerina standards are terrifying.</p><p>The group takes a break for lunch after everyone has done dozens of exercises to demonstrate their skills. He heads for the vending machine in the lobby to grab a drink. While he sips, Yuuri overhears some of the competing potential idols making criticisms about the others, including himself.</p><p>“Ugh, I can’t believe nobodies like him could even get this far. Should have never been allowed.”</p><p>“My family has produced generations of talent, I should know. For me this is really just a formality, it’s in my blood, they won’t be choosing people like them.”</p><p>Yuuri really wants to laugh because there’s no way he’d want to have to work with someone like them and they have no idea what’s really going on. There’s a gentle tap on his shoulder.</p><p>“Uh, Hey, I know that some of these guys are total dicks but I wanted to tell you that I really liked your dancing.” </p><p>Yuuri looks up in surprise at the teen. He’s a similar height to Yuuri, with short blond hair that has soft curls and waves to it and soft warm green eyes. Yuuri had noticed that he was one of the ones without any formal dance training but he enjoyed his dancing and seemed confident despite that.</p><p>“Thanks.” Yuuri responds not sure what else to say to him.</p><p>“Do you want to come eat with me and some of the others? I’m Oda Hikaru by the way!” He introduces himself while asking.</p><p>“Sure, and I’m Katsuki Yuuri.”</p><p>Hikaru leads him over to two other boys who’ve already grabbed a table for them.</p><p>“Guys, this is Yuuri! Yuuri this is Kudo Aiko and Bando Zen!”</p><p>Kudo Aiko has a deep tan with dark hair and golden brown eyes, Yuuri also notes that he has a particularly athletic build. If he recalls correctly, he thinks that his profile said he was on his school's Judo team. </p><p>Bando Zen is someone who he recalls better from the files, it’s particularly because he reminds him of Victor when he still had his long platinum locks before he cut them when entering the senior division. The only differences between the two would be that he was obviously Japanese and his eyes were more of a greenish blue. Yuuri had admittedly paid more attention to his profile because of the similarities.</p><p>“Nice to meet you.” He greets them.</p><p>“You too.”<br/>
It’s a little awkward at first, none of them really know each other but Hikaru is perfectly fine to be the one to lead the conversation until they’re all comfortable to participate at their comfort.</p><p>“Hey, does anyone have any pets? I live with my grandparents and they say it’s too much effort for one, but I really want a dog!” Hikaru tells them and Yuuri decides to join the conversation.</p><p>“Ah, I have a toy poodle.” He admits.</p><p>“You do! Do you have a picture? Let us see?” The teen practically has hearts in his eyes at the news. Yuuri pulls up a recent picture he’d taken after the poodle had taken a trip to the groomers, they’d put bows on him. </p><p>“Awe! So cute! What’s their name?” Zen asks him as Yuuri shows them his phone.</p><p>‘Vicchan.”</p><p>The group coos over the picture of Vicchan for a few moments, asking questions that he’s happy to answer. It seems to break the ice for them and they all start to contribute more. Aiko talks about his Judo team and their recent competition and Zen talks about his love for baking. While they’re busy talking, another person walks up to their table.</p><p>“Excuse me? Would it be alright if I sat here with you guys?” A teen with light brown hair and eyes approaches them, He looks unsure and is pretty wary about asking.</p><p>“Of course! There’s always room for more, right?” Hikaru replies immediately and everyone nods along.</p><p>“Thanks, I’m Namba Nobu by the way.”  </p><p>“Nice to meet you.”<br/>
 <br/>
They introduce themselves and then he pauses when Yuuri introduces himself.</p><p>“Have we met before? I feel like I’ve seen you before, do we go to the same school? I go to Sakura Academy not too far from here.” Nobu asks him, trying to think back.</p><p>“No, I live pretty far from here, I don’t think we’ve met before.” Yuuri tells him, he doesn’t recognize him either.</p><p>“Ah, okay, maybe there’s someone who looks like you.” They wave it off and Nobu warms up quickly to them, becoming a bit bold and casually flirting with everyone. His goal seems to be getting them all flustered, which he enjoys way too much.</p><p>Yuuri is disappointed when the lunch hour is up because he’s actually having fun when they head back to the audition room. He’s also annoyed because they’re not separated from the assholes from earlier anymore. There’s a small group of them all clustered together, making awful comments that they know their targets can hear. They eventually get back to making comments about Yuuri again and he’s not unused to being bullied but they still urk him.</p><p>Particularly now because they’re making fun of his dancing. Minako-sensei would roast their asses to the depths of hell if she were here honestly. </p><p>“You know, maybe if someone had taught you to dance properly, you would know what it looks like.” A guy with long dark hair behind the group calls them out and the boys whip around glaring at the perpetrator.</p><p>“Oh, really? Like you’re an expert?” One boy sarcastically bites out at the other.</p><p>“Oh, I’m far from one but I have had about a decade of formal dance training. But I also know that you’ve been in my class for the last year and not quite paying attention, let alone showing up on time.” He calmly replies to them. “Or at all.”</p><p>The other boy looks like he wants to strangle him but he’s gone soon after. Yuuri decides that he likes him and hopes that they will be able to talk. After a while of performing different exercises he does end up sitting next to the guy. He waves tentatively to him and he smiles back at Yuuri.</p><p>“You trained in ballet, right? I can tell. Your form is really good.” He whispers off-handedly.</p><p>“Thanks, yours is too. I’m Katsuki Yuuri.”</p><p>“Nii Saburo.” </p><p>They don’t interact beyond that but Yuuri has a good feeling about him. The auditions finish up for the day and he says goodbye to the guys that he’d made a tentative friendship with earlier. Once he’s gathered his stuff together, Yuuri heads off to Handa’s office. He turns the corner near the lounge area and accidentally collides with another body, falling backwards onto his behind.</p><p>“Oh no! Are you okay? I wasn’t looking where I was going, I’m so sorry!” A teen frantically apologizes to him, Yuuri wonders if he accidentally ran into an established idol because the first thing he notices is this guy is unfairly attractive with carefully styled blond locks and light colored eyes that draw his attention.</p><p>“No, I’m fine! I should have been looking where I was going too!” Yuuri rushes to apologize as well.</p><p>“Ah, You’re still on the ground! Let me help you up!” He extends his hand and pulls Yuuri up, checking him over for any injuries. The fall was really nothing to him, he’s taken harder fall on the ice and gotten immediately back up to continue his program.</p><p><br/>
“Are you sure you're okay?” </p><p>“Yeah, I’m fine.” Yuuri reassures him.</p><p>“Oh, you were in the idol auditions earlier!” The teen exclaims as he recognizes Yuuri. It takes a moment for Yuuri to recall him as well because he’d be trying to observe quite a few people, it’d been hard to take notice of everyone.</p><p>“Ah, yes, you were too? Weren’t you?” Yuuri confirms.</p><p>“Yeah! I’m Fuse Ren! Nice to meet you! I’m sorry for knocking you down.” He introduces himself.</p><p>“Really, it’s not that being of a deal but thank you. I’m Katsuki Yuuri, by the way.” So it seems that he ran into another one of the potential idols, that’s better than running into someone who is definitely an idol, he guesses.</p><p>“Well, I have to get going! Sorry for bumping into you again. I hope we see each other again!”</p><p>“You too.”</p><p>Yuuri watches him run off before he continues off to meet up with Handa. He knocks on his office door and waits for his response.</p><p>“Ah! Yuuri, how’d it go? Did you get a good feeling from anyone?” Handa asks him as he enters.</p><p>“Actually, I think I may.”</p><p>“That’s good!’</p><p>Handa notifies the other idol recruits during the week and schedules a date to take them to Hasetsu so that they can all meet. Yuuri is busy with Junior Worlds coming up around the corner and Higa has put him in intense training mode so he can’t go with Handa to meet everyone. The manager watches them all as they ride the train to Hasetsu and notes that they all seem friendly and acquainted themselves pretty quickly, which he assumes is what led Yuuri to suggesting them. He’s pretty unsure of himself at times and finding people who reach out to Yuuri is good for him.</p><p>They show up at Ice castle and Handa can see the confusion on their faces.</p><p>“What are we doing at an ice rink?” Nii Saburo is the first to ask their new manager.</p><p>“Ah, we’re meeting up with the final member of the group! He was the first selected and then he helped me choose you six. He’s a bit busy training, you’ll see!” </p><p>They walk in and they can hear music playing as they enter, in the middle of the rink Yuuri is doing a full run through of his free skate. He transitions from a step sequence into his final combination jump ending with his favorite triple axel and then quickly into a spin before he strikes his final pose.</p><p>He’s breathing heavily as the music’s last few notes ring out and squints as he sees the group at the edge of the rink.</p><p>“That’s great Yuuri! Take a break, I think you have visitors!” Higa calls out from where she’d been watching him. She nods to Handa as he greets her.</p><p>“How’s practice going?”</p><p>“Good, some things we need to tweak but he’ll be ready in time for worlds.” </p><p>Yuuri skates over to the boards and takes a sip from his water bottle, Higa hands him his glasses and he puts them on while pushing his hair out of his face.</p><p>“Uh, Hey?” Yuuri shyly greets the group, who are all slightly shocked as they recognize him.</p><p>“Yuuri! It’s you! Wait, are you already an idol?” Hikaru asked as he tried to reconcile the information in his brain.</p><p>“Sort of? Handa-san recruited me several weeks ago because I’m a figure skater and he wanted my input on the other members. Sorry if this is a bit weird?” Yuuri explains to them.</p><p>“Ah!” Nobu exclaims suddenly. “I remember where I know you from now! I went to the Nationals Championship with my parents, you came in fourth!”</p><p>Yuuri blushes, surprised that he was recognized for his skating. Off to the side Handa looks pleased with himself as the new group of idols start to excitedly talk with each other after this discovery. He knows that this will pan out exactly how he believed it would.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for Reading! Check for Updates on my Tumblr thescribblerqueen or on Ko-fi at ScribblerQueen.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Things Change</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Flashforward eight years, many things have changed for Yuuri.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So much had happened in eight years.</p>
<p>Much to Yuuri’s disbelief, the idol group had taken off and become insanely popular. Their group, Impulse, had spent their first two years working out of Hasetsu while putting together their first album and tour. By having the group relocate Hasetsu, they were able to take advantage of having Minako as their dedicated choreographer and dance instructor for the months that they trained. With the change up in Yuuri’s schedule to add in idol duties on top of training it was more beneficial to hold on to Ice Castle with the unrestricted access he had to the rink.</p>
<p>The other idols also transferred to his high school in Hasetsu because Handa had required that they continue their education, emphasizing that their education was still important. It was probably one of the best outcomes for Yuuri, prior to that he was too shy to interact with the other students in his year. He had mostly hung out with Yuuko and Takeshi who were a few years above him which usually left him by himself until then. The others were already friendly with Yuuri and gravitated towards him while adjusting to life in Hasetsu and had significantly protected him from the bullies at his school.</p>
<p>After they had graduated though, their popularity had started increasing immensely and so had their schedule. Higa and Yuuri had mutually decided that he needed a coach that would be more comfortable with working around his schedule as she was looking to take on more students. Handa in turn introduced him to Celestino Cialdini.</p>
<p>Because Celestino worked out of Detroit and partnered with a local college to use their rink, it presented the group with a turn of events. In order to work with Celestino, they had made not only the decision to relocate to Detroit but for all of them to attend the college despite that Yuuri was the only one technically obligated with his coaching contract. Handa had spun their move as an international expansion plan to their idol agency, which worked.</p>
<p>Despite their excitement for the ‘college experience’, they’d been restricted from the dorms. Their assigned bodyguard, Aoki Yushiro, had completely vetoed them. Instead the agency purchased and remodeled a nearby house that could accommodate them all. It was definitely much nicer than the dorms would’ve been and they avoided the issue of having a random roommate assigned to one of them. That was an issue that his rinkmate and bestfriend, Phichit Chulanont, had dealt with during his first semester skating under Celestino.</p>
<p>Phichit’s roommate had been down right psychotic and probably doing some hard drugs during his tenure as his roommate. He couldn’t take it after one semester with his roommate and sought to change roommates but had unfortunately been denied by residence administrators. When he’d gotten the rejection email during practice Phichit practically started bawling his eyes out. Once Yuuri had been able to decipher his words he figured he had an easy solution.</p>
<p>“Why don’t you just room with me?”</p>
<p>There was a spare room at the idol group’s house, mostly being used for storage purposes, and Phichit actively spent a lot of time befriending him despite his shy and standoffish attitude at the rink. He figured that he wouldn’t mind him living with them.</p>
<p>“Are you sure? Don’t you have other roommates? Don’t you need to ask permission or something?” Phichit had asked him.</p>
<p>“Not really, they’d be fine with it. I can guarantee they’re not crazy either.” He insisted.</p>
<p>Yuuri took Phichit to meet the idols after their practice and it occurred to him about ten seconds after walking into the house that he’d never mentioned anything about being in an idol group. Phichit of course kept up with all the campus gossip and knew exactly who almost all the idols were. Key word almost. Since Yuuri didn’t wear his glasses while performing and was often styled differently, Phichit hadn’t recognized him.</p>
<p>Plenty of other students knew and it hadn’t phased Yuuri in the slightest that he should have mentioned it at some point.</p>
<p>After Phichit finished having a slight melt down, Yuuri explained the situation to them. Then in order to rescue Phichit’s belongings they’d gone over to his dorm as a group and brought Aoki with them. Their bodyguard’s purpose was mostly to intimidate Phichit’s psychotic roommate while they swiftly packed up his belongings. Phichit was promptly moved in following those events.</p>
<p>Handa barely batted an eye at the whole situation and congratulated Yuuri on making more friends and asked Phichit if there was anything he wanted added to the grocery list.</p>
<p>Phichit fit right in of course. He shared a love of social media with both Zen and Hikaru, who were the influencers of the group. Within three months the three’s collaboration had produced a strong following for Impulse in Thailand and had Handa coordinating advertisement and appearances following that. It was honestly quite intimidating to watch their antics.</p>
<p>Aside from Thailand, their time abroad had expanded their fanbase well across the North American and Euraisan continents. Some of this was due to the other friendships that Yuuri had made with the skaters he competed with. Christophe Giacometti, Leo De La Iglesia, Seung Gil Lee, and Guang Hong to name a few. And while Impulse succeeded, Yuuri progressed in his career.</p>
<p>And he’d finally made it to the Grand Prix Final in the senior division. Finally glimpsed the chance to compete on the same ice as Victor Nikiforov. Five years away from home, and finally he had the chance to show all his hard work and sacrifice was worth something.</p>
<p>Then Vicchan died.</p>
<p>After his short program, he’d gotten the call from Mari. Vicchan was dead, just suddenly. It left him with so much regret and grief. His free skate suffered for it. Celestino hadn’t been able to get him out of his emotional spiral before it was time for him to skate. Handa wasn’t there to help manage his anxiety either. He’d told their manager that he’d be fine on his own, so that he could focus wrangling the rest of the idols into focusing on their final exams and completing their degrees. Yuuri had already finished his and was waiting on his final grades.</p>
<p>And then Vicchan died.</p>
<p>He ended in sixth place, a hundred points behind Victor. Cried in the bathroom and was yelled at by a younger competitor. He had nothing to show for all his hard work with years of skating.</p>
<p>A lot had changed in eight years.</p>
<p>Impulse went from a concept to full blown reality. He’d gone from an amateur coach, clinging to what was left of his junior years to debuting in seniors and training abroad. Making his way back up the competition levels to the Grand Prix Final. </p>
<p>And now Vicchan was dead, eight years later.</p>
<p>It kept going through his head and it wouldn’t stop. Celestino couldn’t do much to cheer him up and had been silent on the trip back to Detroit. It was a long and tiring set of flights back and it was around midnight when they landed. It took a good chunk of time to get through customs and Yuuri was exhausted.</p>
<p>“Handa-san and Aoki-san are waiting at the baggage area for us.” Celestino tells him as they finally deboard their plane. He nods, only half paying attention.</p>
<p>He moves on autopilot through the airport and doesn’t realize they’ve even made it to the baggage area until Handa puts a hand on his shoulder. Yuuri looks up at him and the manager gives him a sympathetic smile.</p>
<p>“Everything’s going to be okay. Let’s go home.”</p>
<p>It’s not as reassuring as it normally is but Yuuri doesn’t really care enough about anything at the moment. Aoki grabbed his luggage from baggage claim and took his carryon, putting it in the back trunk of the car as Handa opened the door for him. He slides in wordlessly and leans his head against the window.</p>
<p>They drop Celestino off at his apartment before heading to the house, silent all the way. Handa knew that it’d been a long and exhausting few days and that Yuuri would be better off getting some rest before he tried talking with him about his loss at the final and Vicchan’s death.</p>
<p>Yuuri is surprised to see that everyone is still semi-awake, sitting in the living room when they get inside.</p>
<p>“What are you guys still doing up? Didn’t some of you have exams this morning?” Yuuri asks as they all look up.</p>
<p>“We wanted to be here when you got home, you’ve had a bad week.” Hikaru responds standing up and crossing the room to be the first to hug him. Phichit is right behind him and Yuuri quickly finds himself in the center of a very packed group hug.</p>
<p>“Thank you guys. You’re really the best, I don’t really deserve you guys.”</p>
<p>Ren has never been one to let Yuuri get away with his self-deprecating remarks and quicks cuts him off.</p>
<p>“That’s ridiculous! We’re all practically family, and that includes you too! You don’t get to decide that. Besides we all loved Vicchan too, we hated that we couldn’t be there when you found out.” He dismisses Yuuri’s concerns.<br/>At the mention of Vicchan, tears start to well up in his eyes again.</p>
<p>“He waited for me, and I didn’t get to see him again.” After holding it together for the last few days, Yuuri promptly fell apart.</p>
<p>He’s exhausted both emotionally and physically and Yuuri’s gratefully for his friends. They’ve stayed up until what must be well past two in the morning now, after being up for 8AM exams after several exhausting days of studying, to be there the second he’s home to comfort him about his childhood pet’s sudden death.</p>
<p>Yuuri must have passed out sometime after that because the next thing he knows he’s waking up to find himself under the covers of his bed. He has a feeling that Aoki had relocated them all back to their rooms to properly sleep because it wouldn’t be the first time it’d happened. He lays there for a moment staring at the posters on his walls and feels a twinge of pain as he remembers Victor not recognizing him as a fellow skater. It was salt in the wound of coming in last.</p>
<p>Yuuri looks away and picks up his phone from the bedside table, thankfully charged, the screen reads that it’s already past twelve in the afternoon. He’s not ready to get up yet so he checks his Impulse twitter account, steadily ignoring the one he dedicated for figure skating. He notices that his feed is filled with heartfelt messages about Vicchan’s passing, which is slightly confusing considering he’d been off social media and hadn’t posted anything.</p>
<p>He checks the rest of the idols' pages but notices that they also haven't been posting within the last few days, which is highly unusual especially for Hikaru. Finally he checks the official Impulse page run by their manager and finds that Handa had replied to tweets from concerned fans about the lack of activity.<br/> <br/>Impulse @ImpulseOfficial ✓</p>
<p>Due to concerns raised, we wanted to reassure our fans about our recent absence. A few days ago, @ImpulseYūri’s dog Vicchan passed away. He was very beloved by the members of our group and they are grieving his loss. Please be respectful and wait for our return. -Manager Handa Ryuu</p>
<p>There were hundreds if not thousands of messages giving their condolences in response and they were oddly comforting. He decides to write out a tweet in response.</p>
<p>Katsuki Yūri @ImpulseYūri ✓<br/>I want to thank everyone for the well wishes. This week has been a struggle, especially while having to compete at the same time. I appreciate your support and ask that you continue to remain patient while I deal with this difficult time.</p>
<p>He posts the tweet and exits the app, checking a few other items on his phone before finally tossing the covers off and heading to take a shower to remove the stale feeling of traveling. Yuuri finds himself wishing for the onsen, under the inadequate heat of the shower and wishes more that he’d taken the time to visit Hasetsu during the last five years. Not that he would’ve had much time, between idol duties, figure skating, and college but it would’ve been worth it.</p>
<p>Once he’s finished, Yuuri heads downstairs where he can hear the soft puttering around the kitchen from Zen. He smiles at Yuuri as he appears in the doorway.</p>
<p>“Morning Yuuri, I made you something to eat.” Zen puts down the plate of food in his usual spot. </p>
<p>“It’s technically afternoon.” Yuuri absentmindedly corrected him.</p>
<p>“Well, it’s morning somewhere.” He replies back.</p>
<p>Yuuri looks around and doesn’t see anyone else around. “Everyone else on campus?”</p>
<p>“Not everyone, Nobu was on the couch studying for his last final but he may have fallen asleep.”</p>
<p>“No, I’m awake, just disassociating from my math textbook.” Yuuri lifts his head a little higher and can see Nobu lying on the couch with said textbook covering his face.</p>
<p>“I don’t think you can learn math osmosis.” He comments back as he picks at his breakfast.</p>
<p>“I was actually trying to burn it into my retinas.” Nobu sighs deeply. “I’m too pretty for math, why do I have to take math for interior design? I think god did it to punish me.”</p>
<p>Yuuri looks away and turns to Zen. “Is he okay?”</p>
<p>Zen shrugs and waves it off. “He’ll be fine.”</p>
<p>Nobu pulls the textbook off of his face and sets it aside, sitting up. “I’ve given up, my fate has been decided already anyway.” </p>
<p>He looks at Yuuri sitting at the table half heartedly eating. “How are you doing?”</p>
<p>Yuuri shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know, sort of like I failed. I haven’t accomplished any of my goals, and when I had the chance I failed spectacularly.”</p>
<p>“That’s not true and you know it!” Zen cuts him off. “You made it to the grand prix finals, you’re Japan’s ace and you’re top six in figure skating internationally. You have plenty to be proud of.”</p>
<p>“I came in last at the grand prix final and over a hundred points below first place.” Yuuri protests.</p>
<p>“You don’t need to compare yourself to Victor Nikiforov, he’s been scoring well above everyone for a while. If anything his score is an outlier, so really you didn’t even score that bad.” Zen argues back with him, Yuuri slightly glares at him and Zen knows he’s earned it for even vaguely downplaying Victor in front of Yuuri but he refuses to let the man self deprecate. </p>
<p>“Ah! That’s right you got to meet your idol! Did you at least get to talk to him?” Nobu tries to steer the conversation clear of potential disaster but ends up accidentally hitting it head on.</p>
<p>Yuuri grimaces and puts his head down to avoid looking at them. </p>
<p>“Oh no, what happened? Was he terrible? Do we need to trash him on social media?” Nobu asks immediately afterwards.</p>
<p>“It’s not that, it’s just he didn’t recognize me. He thought I was a fan and asked if I wanted a commemorative photo.”</p>
<p>“And what did you do?” Nobu presses on.</p>
<p>“I walked away. I was embarrassed.” Yuuri adds on as he pressed his hand into his face. “All that work and he didn’t even recognize me.”</p>
<p>“Maybe it’s just that he doesn’t recognize you with your glasses, I mean JJ doesn’t and he’s had to sit at the same table as us during award shows.” Zen offers a polite explanation. </p>
<p>“I don’t think JJ pays attention to most of his competitors though.” His fellow idols grimace as they acknowledge that to also be true.</p>
<p>“Well, then he’s missing out and that’s his own fault.” Nobu valiantly tried to comfort Yuuri not that he thought it did much good.</p>
<p>“Yeah, beside-” There’s a loud rumbling of things falling that comes from the entryway, interrupting their conversation.</p>
<p>The three of them go to look down the hall to see a sheepish looking Ren with way too many shopping bags.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry, I was trying to carry them all in at once.” He apologizes to them.</p>
<p>“That’s fine, as long as you’re okay. And what is with all the shopping bags? Was there a book sale or something?” Yuuri looks at Ren with concern.</p>
<p>“Ah, no, they’re gifts! For you Yuuri! They’re to help you feel better!” Ren proudly announces to them.</p>
<p>“Ren, no, I can’t.”</p>
<p>“Ah! Nope! Can’t hear you! It’s too late! I already bought and paid for it. You have to accept it.”</p>
<p>Yuuri ends up begrudgingly taking the items from Ren and puts them away into his room until he can get to them. He has a late afternoon practice with Celestino because even with the grand prix finals, Japan’s national championships are looming over him very quickly and he can’t avoid them.</p>
<p>He ends up staying later at the rink than intended and when Yuuri gets back to the house, he finds that it’s unusually quiet.</p>
<p>“Where is everyone?” Yuuri asks, looking around as he sets his duffel bag down. Saburo comes down the stairs carrying an empty tea cup.</p>
<p>“Welcome back, Yuuri. The others decided to head to bed early to catch up on sleep and Aiko went for a run.” He answers Yuuri’s question. It makes sense considering they had morning exams after being up till the middle of the night. It fills him with a tinge of guilt.</p>
<p>“Ah, that’s good. They need it. Everyone’s finished with exams now?” Yuuri replies to Aiko.</p>
<p>“Yeah, Hikaru and Phichit were the last two to finish.” He nods absentmindedly.</p>
<p>“We set aside a plate for you, it’s in the fridge. You can just heat it up in the microwave.”</p>
<p>Yuuri doesn’t respond to Saburo’s remarks, and he turns to look at him and sees that he’s lost in his thoughts.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry, things will get better Yuuri.” Yuuri slightly snaps out of it and looks towards him.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I hope so.”</p>
<p>Except, in Yuuri’s opinion, it doesn’t get better. He bombs nationals, coming in 11th place and doesn’t qualify for Four Continents or Worlds. People are wondering if he’s injured. His season is finished and technically so is his contract with Celestino. He’d graduated with a master’s degree in athletic training and Impulse was finishing up it’s North American tour and their various contracts. They had no reason to stay in Detroit beyond that unless Yuuri wanted to continue with Celestino.</p>
<p>Which was another issue. He didn’t think he wanted to. He wasn’t sure about anything right now. He’d been gone from home so long now that all of this didn’t feel worth it anymore. He needed a break.</p>
<p>Which was why he was awkwardly standing behind Handa’s office door trying to summon the courage to knock.</p>
<p>“You can just come in, Yuuri.” He hears Handa’s voice call to him and it catches him off guard. He hesitates and opens the door anyway.</p>
<p>“Handa-san.” Yuuri greets him politely. </p>
<p>“Yuuri. What is it that you want to talk about that’s had you standing there for fifteen minutes?” He doesn’t realize that he’d been standing there for that long and blushes a bit.</p>
<p>“Ah, I've been thinking about possibly taking-” Yuuri pauses, hesitant “-taking a break.”</p>
<p>Handa pauses from handling the paperwork on his desk. “From idol work or skating?” He asks bluntly.</p>
<p>“Both. Both skating and idol duties. I just don’t know what I want right now and it all feels suffocating. I just need to get away for a little bit. You know, clear my head. I was thinking about heading home for a little while.” Yuuri explains in a hurried manner, wanting to get it all out.</p>
<p>“Well, you don’t have any active contracts holding you here and we’ve finished up with our tour. If you want to, you can. Do you know how long you want to take?” Handa asks him without any judgement. He’s always been grateful for his approach to handling Yuuri and his anxiety. He treats his worries and concerns seriously.</p>
<p>“I’m not sure. I just know that I can’t handle this right now. I just need time.” Yuuri answers him.</p>
<p>Handa studies him for a moment and nods. “Alright, I will make the necessary arrangements for your flight and to ship what you need home. Have you talked with the others yet about your decision?”</p>
<p>“Not yet. I wanted to talk with you first. I’ll tell them at dinner tonight.” Handa nods and then Yuuri heads back to his room to figure out the best way to break the news.</p>
<p>He ends up being rather blunt about it, Yuuri never been good about giving bad news. There’s understandably some tears, a large portion of them are from Phichit. But they do understand. In the end, they help him pack up his room to have it shipped back to Hasetsu and Zen does a huge goodbye dinner for him. He ends up with some parting gifts as well and he feels it’s more like a birthday party but without the decoration and cake.</p>
<p>Katsuki Yūri @ImpulseYūri ✓</p>
<p>I have made a decision to take a break for a while. Thank you for all your support and please be patient.</p>
<p>By the next day he’s gone from the Detroit airport to the familiar train station in Hasetsu. It’s an exhausting series of connection flights but Yuuri is happy to be there after five years. He’s surprised about all the posters in the station but he’s a little pleased to see some Impulse posters among the hordes of his skating posters. He snaps a quick picture and sends into their group chat.</p>
<p>“Yuuri!” He looks up in surprise, not expecting to hear the familiar voice of his ballet teacher, Minako. Actually he should, Handa had arranged everything for him so undoubtedly he’d arrange for someone to pick him up. She’s got a welcome home sign too.</p>
<p>“Minako-sensei.” She’s quick to round him up in a hug which he returns. Their exchange also catches the attention of some nearby people, who quickly start to recognize him despite being bundled up and wearing a face mask.</p>
<p>Yuuri signs a handful of autographs before they’re able to escape the train station.</p>
<p>“Five years is a long time, a lot of things have changed.” Minako comments as they drive to Yuu-topia.</p>
<p>“Yeah.” Yuuri sighs, his mind circling back to Vicchan. He’d been doing that a lot lately.</p>
<p>“I’m surprised that you haven’t gained any extra weight, considering you finished the season early.” She mentions off handedly knowing that he usually struggles with it during the off season.</p>
<p>“Yeah, well we only finished our tour recently so it’s not like my workout regimen changed much.” Yuuri replies and she nods. </p>
<p>They pull up in front of the onsen and Yuuri holds his breath. It’s overwhelming to be back home for the first time in so long. Finally, he releases the breath and steps out of the car grabbing his luggage. </p>
<p>He steps through the front door and calls out. “Tadaima.”</p>
<p>“Okaerinasai, Yuuri.” His mother is swift to appear and greet him.</p>
<p>Once he’s finished greeting everyone, Yuuri heads over to the shire room to pay his respects to Vicchan. It’s a bittersweet moment, to come home to his dog if only to grieve him. He spends some time talking to him and apologizing for not coming home sooner. Eventually, his sister appears in the doorway to greet him.</p>
<p>“Welcome back.” Mari leans against the doorway, smoking a cigarette. Unlike with his parents, it’s not the first time he’s seen his sister in the last few years. She comes to some of his competitions and occasionally meets up with when he’s in and out of Japan doing idol work.</p>
<p>“Thank you, Nee-chan.” There’s a brief pause as she puffs on her cigarette.</p>
<p>“So, you get Takao’s number for me yet?” She jokes, knowing full well that her brother would never want to make things weird for a fellow idol by asking for their number for her. Not that it keeps her from hoping to run into him backstage at an event.</p>
<p>“No, not yet.” Yuuri jokes back.</p>
<p>“It’d be nice if you at least got it before you finish being an idol.” Mari comments back. Yuuri flinches slightly, not expecting for her to confront him about it. She’d probably seen his tweet.</p>
<p>“Ah, so you saw it?” Yuuri asks.</p>
<p>“Well, that’s what it sounds like. Just saying. I’m surprised, is all. You’ve seemed pretty committed to being an idol. Will you also be taking a break from skating? I know a lot of people have been speculating.”</p>
<p>Mari is blunt as usual. She’s never been one to let Yuuri run from his problems, she cuts all the bullshit and tends to help him get his head on straight when he’s lost on something. This time is no different.</p>
<p>“I’m not sure yet. I’m too overwhelmed, I needed to get away.” He tells her.</p>
<p>“Just make sure you don’t regret it.”</p>
<p>That’s the most Yuuri confronts his issues when he first comes back. He takes the first few days adjusting back to the time zone and helps out around the onsen. He takes the time to enjoy the baths and greeting familiar faces. It takes him the week to gather the courage to go and see one familiar face in particular.</p>
<p>Yuuri finds himself opening the doors to the familiar surroundings of the Ice Castle rink. He’s half here because he wants to see Yuuko and half because World’s is being shown in the dining area of the onsen and he doesn’t want to think about it. He walks up to the skate rental, smiling as he sees Yuuko.</p>
<p>“Can I rent some skates?” He asks, grinning.</p>
<p>“What size- Yuuri! You’re back! We did you get back?” Yuuko yells in excitement as she sees her friend.</p>
<p>“I got back earlier this week. Sorry it took a while to come see you.” Yuuri apologizes to her.</p>
<p>“Ah, no it’s fine! I’m just glad to see you! How have you been?” Yuuko waves off the concern.</p>
<p>“Fine, I guess. This season didn’t go well, so I thought I’d come back to Hasetsu and clear my head.”</p>
<p>Yuuko glances down to where he’s holding his skates in his duffel bag. She knows him too well. Ice castle has always been his safe haven where he worked through his problems.</p>
<p>“You can go ahead, you know you’re always welcome here.” She tells him, motioning him towards the rink.</p>
<p>He goes and sits down on a bench to put on his skates and Yuuko comes out to keep him company.</p>
<p>“Just going to do some figures?” She asks him.</p>
<p>“Actually, there’s something I want to show you.” Yuuri tells her. He steps out onto the ice handing her his guards and glasses, then skates to the middle of the ice starting with the initial pose for Victor’s free skate. </p>
<p>He performs the entire program for her, downgrading some of the harder jumps and such but it’s Victor’s free skate. It’s something he knows he can show her without judgement because they’d been copying Victor since they were young. Yuuko bursts into applause as soon as he finishes the skate and he’s bashful about it.</p>
<p>“I know it’s not the same but-”</p>
<p>“No, it’s perfect! I love it! So this is what you’ve been working on since the season ended?” She asks him.</p>
<p>“Yeah, it’s always been comforting to work on his programs, so I naturally started doing it after everything.” Yuuri explains, letting her fill what’s unsaid.</p>
<p>“That was so cool!” Yuuri finds himself suddenly surrounded by the rest of the Nishigori family, the triplets loudly hounding him and Takeshi trying to settle them while also greeting them with his familiar teasing. He eventually escapes the triplets clutches, knowing that they’d try and pry any sort of info out of him. Yuuri didn’t want that right now, he’d come back to Hasetsu for privacy to figure things out. He could deal with everything later.</p>
<p>At least that’s what he thought.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Abrupt Chaos in the Life of Katsuki Yuuri</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Yuuri did not plan for any of this.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Yuuri wakes up to his phone ringing. He’d only been asleep for a short while. He sees the Nishigori name and picks up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello?” Yuuri says groggy and confused as to why he was being called so late.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, Yuuri. It’s Takeshi. We have a problem. It seems that the triplets filmed you skating Victor’s free skate and they posted it.” Through the tired haze it takes Yuuri some time to register.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, what?” He asks when it finally clicks</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re so sorry! They got a hold of Yuuko’s phone and used her account.” In the background he can hear the yelling and crying from them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need to go.” Yuuri hangs up on him, swiping open his contacts and pulling open Handa’s number.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It feels like it’s taking forever to ring but it does pick up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yuuri! Shouldn’t you be asleep at this time? Do you still have jet lag?” Handa greets him, bright and cheery. Also definitely unaware of the impending media shitstorm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yuuko’s triplets posted a video of me skating.” He tells his manager immediately.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmmm, and what’s the problem?” Handa inquires, not too panicked by the statement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was skating Victor Nikiforov’s free skate.” Yuuri says in a pleading tone and is obviously overwhelmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There’s a pause of silence and he’s worried that they might have been disconnected for a moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, yes, that would cause a stir.” His unbothered voice frustrates Yuuri.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Handa-san, please! Do something about it! It’s embarrassing, imagine if Victor sees that!” Yuuri pleads with his manager but those pleas seem to be falling on deaf ears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, it already has quite a number of views too, hmm.” That doesn’t sound like concern to Yuuri’s ears and he frowns.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Handa-san, please I need you to take this seriously!” Yuuri pleads again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll have to call you back.” Then he’s unceremoniously hung up on and Yuuri screams frustrated into his pillow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yuuri can’t deal with this right now and decides that the only way to deal with this is to shut off his phone and cover his head with his pillow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It doesn’t work too well for him. He sleeps terribly and in complete denial. Neither of which really help him. Yuuri sighs and hopes that Handa did something about this. He reaches for where he tossed his phone last night and braces himself as he turns it back on. It lights up and begins to constantly buzz. He’s fucked. He knows it. The several thousand notifications know it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He peers hesitantly at them and without reading a single one swipes them off his notification screen. Yuuri decides that he better see what the damage is and checks twitter. Doing so, he becomes increasingly confused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yes the video went viral as expected. But apparently there’s confusion among the masses.</span>
</p><p>
  <b>#1ImpulseStanAccount </b>
  <em>
    <span>@YumiBabe2</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>I didn’t know Katsuki Yuuri could skate???? What is going on???</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Tada Akeno </b>
  <em>
    <span>@TaAKE</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@YumiBabe2 You didn’t know Japan’s top skater, could skate???? Excuse me?</span>
</p><p>
  <b>#1ImpulseStanAccount </b>
  <em>
    <span>@YumiBabe2</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@TaAKE I’m talking about idol, @ImpulseYūri.</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Tada Akeno </b>
  <em>
    <span>@TaAKE</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@YumiBabe2 No, that’s Japanese Men’s Figure Skater @Katsuki_YūriJSF.</span>
</p><p>
  <b>#1ImpulseStanAccount </b>
  <em>
    <span>@YumiBabe2</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@TaAKE No????</span>
</p><p>
  <b>The Otaku</b>
  <span> @RokuSumi</span>
</p><p>
  <span>@YumiBabe2 @TaAKE Uhhh, guys? They’re the same person.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>[Two screenshots of wikipedia's with nearly identical information and photos that list different occupations]</span>
</p><p>
  <b>#1ImpulseStanAccount </b>
  <em>
    <span>@YumiBabe2</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@RokuSumi @ TaAKE Wot?</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Tada Akeno </b>
  <em>
    <span>@TaAKE</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@RokuSumi @YumiBabe2 Wat?</span>
</p><p>
  <b>[Redacted User] </b>
  <em>
    <span>@NoBody$</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>@RokuSumi WHAT!!!</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Aihara Hiroya </b>
  <em>
    <span>@AiHiJSF ✔</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>I’ve competed against Katsuki Yūri as a skater and I have his Impulse poster on my wall. I had no idea. Excuse me, I have to go jump off a bridge.</span>
</p><p><b>Kishi kiri</b> <em><span>@KikiJSF</span></em> <em><span>✔</span></em></p><p>
  <span>@AiHiJSF I’ve indirectly complimented his ass directly to his face, I’ll be joining you. #RIP</span>
</p><p>
  <b>Just Existing </b>
  <em>
    <span>@KAKODO</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Why do people not know that this Katsuki Yūri is not two separate people. Why is it trending? Are you people that DUMB??? ASDFGHJK </span>
</p><p>
  <b>Bad at Everything </b>
  <em>
    <span>@justdontask</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Katsuki Yūri can Sing, Dance, Act, AND ICE SKATE!!! IS THERE ANYTHING HE CAN’T DO??</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yuuri stops amongst his internal meltdown to wonder why the entirety of his fans don’t realize that he is both an Ice Skater and Idol. It’s mind boggling. It’s not like he’s ever hid that fact. Sure his social media for both were separate but why were his wikipedia pages. This leads him into ten minutes of frustrated googling with no answer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He decides to text the idol group chat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Why does no one seem to know I’m both an idol and skater???</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Yuuri texts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>You’ve been pulling a Clark Kent on everyone.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” - Aiko</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>What?” - Yuuri</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You know, Superman?” - Nobu</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I know who Superman is, explain what you meant by it.” - Yuuri</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Well, when you put on your glasses or style your hair differently. People don’t recognize you.”</span>
  </em>
  <em>
    <span>- Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah, it’s been going on for a while now.” - Nobu</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Didn’t you wonder why JJ never talks to you during competitions but he’ll talk to you at award shows?” - Hikaru</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m always too nervous to talk or interact with anyone during competitions, why would I notice?” -Yuuri</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Fair point.” - Saburo</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“So you guys knew, and didn’t say anything???” -Yuuri</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Tbh, we didn’t realize that you didn’t know.” - Saburo</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah.” - Zen</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I knew.” -Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“SO! Are we gonna discuss you skating Victor’s routine or nah?” -Hikaru</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS BLOWING UP THE GROUP CHAT!!” - Ren</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Wait nvm I’m caught up.” - Ren</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Continue on.” - Ren</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“YUURI, TELL US!” - Zen</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“COME ON, STOP BEING A COWARD!” - Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“He’s leaving our asses on read. WE KNOW YOU’RE READING THESE YUURI!” - Nobu</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“QUICK SOMEONE GET PHICHIT IN ON THIS!” - Ren</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“YUURI YOU CAN’T SEDUCE YOUR FUTURE HUSBAND BY HIDING.” -Zen</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“THINK ABOUT YOUR FUTURE POODLE CHILDREN.” - Ren</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay so Phichit is at practice and Celestino has his phone but I’ve been told to pass on the following message” - Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“YUURI I WILL GET ON A PLANE AND FIGHT YOU IF YOU RETIRE!” - Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Guys, someone add the table flip emoticon. IDK HOW TO DO IT.” - Aiko</span>
  </em>
</p><p><em><span>“ </span></em><em><span>(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻” </span></em><span>-</span> <span>Nobu</span></p><p><em><span>“(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻” </span></em><span>-</span> <span>Zen</span></p><p><em><span>“(┛◉Д◉)┛彡┻━┻” </span></em><span>-</span> <span>Hikaru</span></p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“┻━┻︵ \(°□°)/ ︵ ┻━┻” </span>
  </em>
  <span>- Ren</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thanks guys.” </span>
  </em>
  <span>- Aiko</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The speed at which the others are texting him is mildly frightening and Yuuri decides that it’s best to mute the group chat for now. He lays there, staring at the ceiling for a long while trying to figure out how his life was filled with impending doom so suddenly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>You know what, he’s just going to ignore it. It’s not like anyone is going to bother him in Hasetsu.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It turns out that is not exactly true. Apparently the universe decided that wasn’t allowed because within a few short days he is surprised by one Victor Nikiforov showing up butt naked in his family onsen. It’s a dream come true and a nightmare all at once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sends a picture of Victor sleeping on the onsen floor into the idol group chat and waits. Yuuri gets a response pretty soon after.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Where’d u get the pic from</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”-Hikaru</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Wait, are those the onsen robes?</span>
  </em>
  <span>” - Ren</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Victor showed up saying that he’s going to coach me. Help.” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Yuuri</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>That’s the opposite of a problem.” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Nobu</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Get that dick!” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Aiko</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Good Luck, we believe in you!” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Saburo</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I would’ve posted a video of you skating one of his routine’s myself if I knew that’s all it would take for Victor to sweep you off your feet. [You’re doing amazing sweetie.jpeg]” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Hikaru</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Guess I’ll have to be Yuuri’s second husband now, oh well!” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Zen</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“</span>
  </em>
  <em>
    <span>＼(^o^)／” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Ren</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I hate you all.” - </span>
  </em>
  <span>Yuuri</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We love you too!” </span>
  </em>
  <span>- Hikaru</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was rather useless, he really should have known better than to ask them for help about Victor spontaneously showing up to coach him. They were repeat offenders when it came to Victor related Shenanigans. Yuuri had more than once had launched across interview couches and red carpets to cover the mouth of one of the other idols when they attempted to out his crush on Victor. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looks over again at Victor and sighs. What is he going to do?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Apparently the answer is let Victor coach him. Yuuri feels like all his plans went out the window once Victor arrived in Hasetsu. He was halfway on his way to retiring after last year’s failures and now he was reconditioning himself back into full time training. At least because he was still actively working out for his idol work he wasn’t entirely out of shape, that would’ve been rough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Interacting with Victor is also an interesting experience.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yuuri! It’s so cool that you’re a celebrity! What are the names of your albums? What other work have you done? Where are the other idols in your group? When can I meet them? Oh! Where can I buy some of the merch? I feel like as your coach I should buy some to show my support! Also, we should probably speak about your schedule accommodations! You have a manager right? I should probably be speaking with them as well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Victor seems to speak with zero sense of brain to mouth filter and is very overwhelmingly talkative. He’s admittedly nothing like Yuuri had ever imagined and he’s not sure how to take it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mean technically you’re a celebrity too Victor. I’m not much different.” Yuuri starts off trying to answer all of his questions.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But Yuuri, it’s completely different! I can’t sing, and I’ve never done acting or anything like that!” He argues with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He does have somewhat of a point, Yuuri is willing to concede. But this is still a very weird situation for him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anyway, I’ve kind of taken a break from idol duties at the moment. So you won’t have to worry about any scheduling issues or have to talk with my manager. The others are busy on individual projects back in America, so they’re not in Japan right now. You probably won’t meet them for a little while.” Yuuri continues on explaining.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He would also prefer if Victor never met any of the other idols but he had a feeling that he wouldn’t be able to prevent that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh? I didn’t realize that? Why are you taking a break?” Victor asks, tilting his head much like his poodle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yuuri feels a little caught off guard about being asked about it and decides to be a little vague in his answer. “I have a few reasons, it takes a lot of work and I felt like I needed a break.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Victor nods very understandingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course! Especially when you’re training for competitions and you were going to college too! It was probably very stressful! It’s good to take a breather from time to time!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continue on with Yuuri’s training for the rest of the afternoon with Victor mildly pestering Yuuri with questions about himself. He tries his best to answer them but it’s mentally exhausting to have this much attention on him. Most of his fans weren’t this enthusiastic and usually being with the other idols lifted a lot of the burden of social interaction. With Victor it’s just intense one-on-one conversation and slight invasiveness. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s relieved once their afternoon training session is over for today and Yuuri slips away to the onsen to relax and freshen up. Once he’s done and redressed he heads to the main area to ask his mother if she needs any help.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kaa-san!” Yuuri calls out to his mother once he spots her in the hall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, Yuuri, I was just looking for you. I wanted to let you know that the boys have arrived.” His mother informs him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pauses for a moment, confused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh? The boys are here, what do you-” Yuuri cuts himself off as his mind finally registers who his mother is talking about, because there’s only one group of people she could be referring to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When did they get here?” Yuuri asks, shocked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A little over an hour after you left this morning.” Hiroko replies to her son. “They went and rested in their rooms and now they’re in the dining area eating.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yuuri quickly thanks his mother and rushes out into the dining area, where he’s confronted with the sight of his fellow idols lounging around without a concern in the world.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you guys doing here?” He all but shouts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yuuri! You’re back!” Hikaru greets, pointedly ignoring his question. The others also call out casual greetings of their own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not what I asked! Aren’t you all still supposed to be in America? And where’s Handa-san and Aoki-san?” Yuuri questions them again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve finished all our obligations.” Ren responds nonchalantly. “There’s no reason we couldn’t come back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, we missed you! So we’d thought we'd come and visit you!” Zen adds on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And Handa-san and Aoki-san?” Yuuri asks again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, they didn’t come with us.” Aiko admits to him finally.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you tell them you were coming to visit me?” Yuuri questions them with an eyebrow raised. There’s no way their manager or bodyguard would let them travel on their own with no protection, they tended to draw a lot of attention from fans.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We told Mama Katsuki. Does that count?” Nobu asks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yuuri puts his face in his hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, Aoki-san is going to kill you guys.” He groans.</span>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Welp, it has unexpectedly been three months but the next chapter is here! I hope you enjoyed reading! You can always look for updates on my tumblr.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! You can check for updates on my tumblr thescribblerqueen or on Ko-fi under scribblerqueen.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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